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BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
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F r i d ay, O c t O b e r 3, 2025
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EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
“This agreement solidifies a partnership for decades to come.” SAINTS OWNER GAyLE BENSON
Saints sign long-term lease deal for Dome
Charter school changes approved
Board OKs contract renewals for longer terms BY CHARLES LUSSIER Staff writer
STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE
Saints owner Gayle Benson and Gov. Jeff Landry celebrate during a news conference Thursday announcing a new long-term lease of the Caesars Superdome.
State wins several concessions in agreement BY ANTHONY McAULEY, TYLER BRIDGES and JEFF DUNCAN
ä Jeff Duncan: Deal secures Saints’ future — for now. PAGE 1C
Gov. Jeff Landry and Gayle Benson have signed a new long-term lease that will keep the Saints playing at the Caesars Superdome for at least another decade, after lengthy negotiations that were hung up over side real estate deals and the state’s share in profits from food sales and other concessions. The deal was formally announced Thursday during a signing ceremony on the field of the Superdome, where Benson and Landry gathered with Saints officials and civic leaders. Benson and Landry both praised the agreement, with Benson calling it “an example of our continued special partnership with this great state of Louisiana.” “This agreement solidifies a partner-
ship for decades to come,” she added. The lease runs through 2035 and then gives the Saints options to renew every five years through 2055. It also resolves sticking points that had delayed final approval even after the stadium lease itself was finalized last month. At issue were the team’s lucrative leases tied to Benson Tower, Champions Square, and the Saints’ practice facility in Jefferson Parish, which state officials had sought to separate from the Superdome deal. In the end, the state and the Saints agreed to sign the package together, clearing the way for Landry and Benson to make the extension official at the ceremony inside the Dome. The signing averts what had become
Staff writers
a tense standoff that has complicated New Orleans’ bid to host the 2031 Super Bowl, a showcase event that requires a long-term stadium commitment. Because of the stalemate, the city missed an NFL deadline last month to be placed on the shortlist of host sites. Saints spokesperson Greg Bensel said then that if a lease could be finalized in time, Benson would aim to persuade NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to reopen the bidding. “Governor, I am confident that between you and I, we will give it our absolute best effort,” Benson said Thursday. Any bid would still require a formal proposal from the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation and City Hall, and there is no assurance New Orleans will ultimately land the game.
ä See SAINTS, page 7A
Charter schools in Baton Rouge with strong academic performance would get their contracts renewed for longer periods of five to 10 years under new but contested rules. A separate proposal, however, was rejected that would have allowed “D”-rated charter schools in the capital city that have shown good progress with their toughest students the chance to add students and grade levels above what was outlined in their contracts. The East Baton Rouge Parish School Board on Thursday gave preliminary approval to update its charter school rules. A final vote is scheduled for Oct. 16. The renewal and expansion proposals “The vast prompted lengthy dismajority of cussion and split votes, amid renewed debate this is stuff about whether charter the state schools should be al- Legislature lowed to expand in Baton has taken Rouge. out of our Board members, however, voted unanimously control. This to approve a series of is moving other changes in the more and policy, which is over 100 more away pages. from local The proposed updates control of incorporate several changes in state law enschools.” acted since the policy was last updated in 2019, MIKE GAUDET, East Baton including increased state scrutiny of local Rouge Parish charter school applica- School Board tions and the removal member of numerical targets for charter schools, so that they reflect the student poverty levels of the districts authorizing them. Charter schools are public schools run privately via contracts. East Baton Rouge Parish currently has contracts with 13 charter schools, which teach more than 6,000 students, representing approximately 16% of the district’s enrollment. In the past two years, Baton
ä See CHARTER, page 7A
New CEO named for BR Food Bank
Trump says U.S., drug cartels in ‘armed conflict’ BY AAMER MADHANI and LISA MASCARO Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has declared drug cartels to be unlawful combatants and says the United States is now in an “armed conflict” with them, according to a Trump administration memo obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday, following recent U.S. strikes on boats in the Caribbean. The memo appears to represent an extraordinary assertion of presidential war powers, with Trump effectively declaring that traffick-
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ing of drugs into the United States amounts to armed conflict requiring the use of military force — a new rationale for past and future actions. “The President determined that the United States is in a noninternational armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations,” the memo says. Trump directed the Pentagon to “conduct operations against them pursuant to the law of armed conflict.” “The United States has now reached a critical point where we must use force in self-defense and
BY ELLYN COUVILLION Staff writer
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON
President Donald Trump walks from Marine One after arriving on the South ä See TRUMP, page 6A Lawn of the White House on Tuesday.
A new CEO with a background in international relief services has been named to head the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. Elizabeth “Liz” Pfifer will join the Food Bank in November as chief executive officer and president. She replaces Mike Manning, who announced plans to retire in December after more than 20 years of leading the organization.
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Pfifer worked for more than two decades with Catholic Relief Services in the U.S., Africa and Asia. Most r e c e n t l y, she served as the organ i z a t i o n ’s Pfifer director of workforce development for a workforce of approximately 6,000.
ä See FOOD, page 6A
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